Friday, June 15, 2012

Designing K-3 Professional Support through iBooks Author: A Look at a Summer Literacy Project

I. The Project
This summer I will be working to support teachers and children in K-3 summer schools scheduled at 16 sites in a city. The focus of our work will be on the prevention of reading difficulties. For the last several weeks I have been busy creating eBooks for teachers as professional support for their work. Each book is aligned and helps to explicate the pedagogy and content of the literacy project I designed.

Four literacy/learning structures dominate the 3-hour block in kindergarten and grade 1 and three in the 90 minute block in grades 2 and 3. These include:

There will be internal supports (master teachers, principals) and external supports (coaches from my company and myself) along with the eBook guides. Below are two pages from the 42-page Interactive Read Aloud Guide. In this eBook each of the selected read aloud textsare outlined and include:

book introduction

vocabulary selection

text dependent questions aligned to CCSS [ELA and mathematics]

aesthetic questions and engagements designed to invite embodiment of the text.

What is significant about iBook Author is that it allowed me to embed specific video of excellent teachers doing the teaching work that is described in the guide, along with slideshows, hyperlinks, images and text. I have been fortunate to have video of great teachers like Michele Damiano and Barbara Cummings teaching. I am at the stage where I have just uploaded the books via iTunes Producer so that they can be published and then made available for the teachers to download (if the choose) for their use.

The linkages between students seeing themselves represented in the text and reading comprehension (Bell & Clark, 1998; Bishop, 1990; ) is well established. So too is the importance of teachers modeling with mentor texts and guided texts that are inclusive (Gangi, 2008; McNair 2008; Scroggins & Gangi, 2004). The guided literacy and take home to read books were selected with this in mind.

Technology
So the one thing I don't have in place that I know would make a difference would be a handful of iPads/iPod Touches in each classroom with some specific apps that I have used with other children or have seen used. I am trying to figure out how to get that done--if not across all 16 sites at least at a few sites. If you have any ideas let me know.